has been the

persona A persona (plural personae or personas), depending on the context, is the public image of one's personality, the social role that one adopts, or simply a fictional Character (arts), character. The word derives from Latin, where it originally ref ...

used by seven different

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

s in

New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion based in Nakano, Tokyo. Founded on January 13, 1972, by Antonio Inoki, the promotion was sold to Yuke's, who later sold it to Bushiroad in 2012. TV Asahi and Amuse, Inc. own minority shares ...

as opponents of the four incarnations of

Tiger Mask is a Japanese manga series written by Ikki Kajiwara and illustrated by Naoki Tsuji. The series was first published in Kodansha's ''Bokura Magazine'' from 1968 to 1970 and was later published in ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'' from 1970 to ...

. The character is drawn from the original

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

ese

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

. The trademark of the character is to always wear a mask and tights in an almost identical design to that of his perennial rival only with entirely black and silver coloring.

Origins

According to the storyline set forth by the original anime, Black Tiger is a wrestler trained and sent by a

Yakuza , also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media, by request of the police, call them , while the ''yakuza'' call themselves . The English equivalent for the term ...

-like organisation called the Tiger's Cave. The Tiger's Cave desire vengeance upon the wrestler Tiger Mask, a former trainee of theirs, for publicly turning his back on them and no longer paying them monetary tributes. With the anime's protagonist translated by

Antonio Inoki Muhammad Hussain Inoki (born ; February 20, 1943 – October 1, 2022) was a Japanese professional wrestler, martial artist, politician, and promoter of professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. He was best known by the ring name , a homag ...

to actual NJPW wrestling events (in the form of

Satoru Sayama (born November 27, 1957) is a Japanese professional wrestling, Japanese professional wrestler, mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist, MMA and wrestling promoter and writer, best known as the original Tiger Mask (professional wrestling), Tige ...

) it was perhaps inevitable that his arch-enemy would also appear in the promotion. The wrestlers portraying Black Tiger have traditionally been

gaijin is a Japanese word for foreigners and non-Japanese citizens in Japan, specifically being applied to foreigners of non-Japanese ethnicity and those from the Japanese diaspora who are not Japanese citizens. The word is composed of two kanji: and ...

, somewhat of a throwback to the days in which non-Japanese were portrayed as heels to fight against national heroes such as

Rikidōzan (born Kim Sin-rak; ; November 14, 1924 – December 15, 1963), better known as Rikidōzan (), was a Korean-born Japanese wrestler who competed in sumo and professional wrestling. He was known as The Father of Puroresu, and one of the most inf ...

to promote national pride after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, paralleling the way American promotions would often portray wrestlers depicted as, or indeed actually being from, foreign countries as villains pitted against American-born heroes. In other countries this has varied. Black Tiger IV was a member of

Team Japan Team Japan is a professional wrestling group that was brought together as a part of Total Nonstop Action Wrestling's World X Cup Tournament. History 2004 Team Japan started as six-man team as team captain Nosawa from All Japan Pro Wrestling tea ...

during the TNA 2006 World X-Cup Tournament and during his

CMLL Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre Co., Ltd. (CMLL; , "World Wrestling Council") is a ''lucha libre'' professional wrestling promotion based in Mexico City. The promotion was previously known as ''Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre'' (''EMLL'') (''Mexi ...

career Black Tiger III was overtly portrayed as being Japanese.

Black Tiger V (born Go Yong-Il (Hangul: 고 용일), July 5, 1972) is a Zainichi-Korean professional wrestler. Takaiwa is one of the more well-traveled junior heavyweights in Japan, having wrestled for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), and Pro Wrestling Zero1, ...

was the first time Black Tiger was played by a Japanese wrestler.

Incarnations

Black Tiger I

Mark "Rollerball" Rocco, an established British wrestler, was the first to assume the persona in 1982 to oppose the original Tiger Mask,

.Guerrero, Eddie. ''Cheating Death, Stealing Life: The Eddie Guerrero Story'', p. 92. His pinnacle of success was defeating

Gran Hamada , better known by his ring name , is a Japanese professional wrestler, the first to adopt the high-flying Mexican lucha libre style. He has wrestled for New Japan Pro-Wrestling, the Universal Wrestling Federation, Michinoku Pro and All Japan Pro ...

in a tournament final for the vacant

WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship The WWWF/WWF Junior Heavyweight Championship is a former championship recognized by the World (Wide) Wrestling Federation and New Japan Pro-Wrestling for wrestlers of smaller size. The title existed from 1967 through 1985. History In April 1994, ...

on May 6, 1982, and was defeated twenty days later by Tiger Mask for the belt. Sayama left NJPW in 1983 and the rights to Tiger Mask were purchased by

All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW/AJP) or simply All Japan is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion established on October 21, 1972 when Giant Baba split away from the Japanese Wrestling Association and created his own promotion. Many wrestlers had left with Baba, ...

the following year for the use of

Mitsuharu Misawa was a Japanese amateur and professional wrestler and promoter. He is primarily known for his time in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), and also for forming the Pro Wrestling Noah promotion in 2000. In the early 1990s, Misawa gained fame alongside ...

. AJPW were not to create a Black Tiger counterpart. Rocco continued to portray Black Tiger in NJPW until 1990.

Black Tiger II

In August 1993 Black Tiger made a return, this time portrayed by

Eddie Guerrero Eduardo Gory Guerrero Llanes (October 9, 1967 – November 13, 2005) was an American professional wrestler. He was a prominent member of the Guerrero wrestling family, being the son of first-generation wrestler Gory Guerrero. Eddie Guerrero is ...

. His Tiger Mask rival at this time was

Koji Kanemoto (born Kim Il-Sung (김일성); October 31, 1966) is a Japanese professional wrestler of Zainichi Korean descent. He has previously worked with New Japan Pro-Wrestling and All Japan Pro Wrestling. He is currently a freelancer. Professional wrestl ...

. Kanemoto unmasked in January 1994, while Guerrero was a finalist in the 1994 Super Grade Junior Heavyweight Tag League with

The Great Sasuke , born July 18, 1969), is a Japanese professional wrestler, promoter and politician, currently wrestling for Michinoku Pro Wrestling (MPW) under the ring name . Aside from professional wrestling, he is also a former Iwate Prefectural Assembly l ...

, came third in the 1994 and 1995

Best of the Super Juniors The Best of the Super Juniors (often abbreviated BOSJ) is an annual professional wrestling tournament held by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), typically in May or June. Originally known as Top of the Super Juniors, the first tournament was held in ...

tournaments and was victorious in 1996.

Black Tiger III

Following the fall of WCW, alumnus

César Cuauhtémoc González César Cuauhtémoc González Barrón (9 January 1968 – 11 May 2019) was a Mexican '' luchador enmascarado'' (masked wrestler) and actor. He was known best as Silver King, but also had an extensive stint as the third wrestler to portray the Bl ...

, better known as Mexican star Silver King began wrestling for NJPW through their working relationship with his home promotion

Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre Co., Ltd. (CMLL; , "World Wrestling Council") is a ''lucha libre'' professional wrestling promotion based in Mexico City. The promotion was previously known as ''Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre'' (''EMLL'') (''Mexi ...

Tiger Mask IV is a Japanese professional wrestler, best known for being the fourth man to portray . He currently works for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) where he is a former 6-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion and 2-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team C ...

would not sign with NJPW until early 2003 and the highlight of Black Tiger III's Japanese run would be a failed attempt at the

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship The is a professional wrestling tag team championship owned by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion. "IWGP" is the acronym of NJPW's governing body, the . The title was introduced on August 8, 1998, at an NJPW live event. The IWGP Junior ...

alongside his real-life brother Dr. Wagner, Jr. before he devoted himself full-time to his CMLL career. González continued to use the Black Tiger name in Mexican independent companies even after CMLL repackaged him as "El Bronco" following NJPW unveiling Black Tiger IV in 2005. His final match under the persona came when he lost a Mask versus Mask match to

L.A. Park Adolfo Margarito Tapia Ibarra (November 14, 1965) is a Mexican ''luchador enmascarado'' ( masked professional wrestler), who currently performs as L. A. Park for Major League Wrestling in the United States, where he is a former MLW World Tag ...

on February 4, 2006. He briefly wrestled under the persona again in 2017, teaming with Black Tiger VII to take on Dr Wagner Jr. and El Hijo de Dr. Wagner Jr.

Black Tiger IV

In 2005

Rocky Romero John R. Rivera (born October 28, 1982) is a Puerto Rican-American professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist. He is currently signed non-exclusively to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), better known by his ring name Rocky Romero (ロッ ...

debuted as Black Tiger IV by NJPW and immediately thrust into a feud with

, facing him for the

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship The is a professional wrestling world junior heavyweight championship owned by the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion. "IWGP" is the acronym of NJPW's governing body, the . Only wrestlers under the junior heavyweight weight-limit may ho ...

on May 14. He made his debut for

Ring of Honor Ring of Honor (ROH) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida. The promotion was founded by Rob Feinstein on February 23, 2002, and was operated by Cary Silkin from 2004 until 2011, when the promotion was so ...

in America, making him the first Black Tiger to wrestle as Black Tiger in America since Mark Rocco. After winning the

NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship The NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world championship in the National Wrestling Alliance. Created in 1945, the title is competed for by junior heavyweight wrestlers. History The first NWA World Junior ...

on August 25 he defeated Tiger Mask for his title on October 8, defending them until losing both to Tiger Mask on February 19, 2006. Black Tiger would join

Jyushin Thunder Liger , better known as and later , is a Japanese retired professional wrestler and mixed martial artist, currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). He is the longest-tenured member of the NJPW roster, having wrestled for the company since h ...

's CTU faction and represent NJPW as a member of Team Japan in TNA Wrestling's World X-Cup. Black Tiger IV returned to New Japan in February 2009, joining GBH and restarting his feud with Tiger Mask IV. On April 5, 2009, at ''Resolution '09'' Tiger Mask IV defeated Black Tiger IV in a title vs. mask match. After the match Romero removed his mask and then raised the arm of Tiger Mask thus ending his run as Black Tiger.

Black Tiger V

Black Tiger's fifth Generation (V) arrived in NJPW at Tokyo Dome February 15, 2009, attacking Tiger Mask IV. For the next couple of months, the new Black Tiger disappeared and was replaced at shows by Black Tiger IV. On April 5, 2009, at ''Resolution '09'' after Tiger Mask had defeated Black Tiger IV for the last time, he was once again attacked by the fifth Black Tiger, who gave him a

Death Valley Driver Professional wrestling throws are the application of professional wrestling techniques that involve lifting the opponent up and throwing or slamming them down. They are sometimes also called "power" maneuvers, as they are meant to emphasize a wrest ...

and then unmasked him. On June 20, 2009, at

Dominion 6.20 Dominion 6.20 was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event promoted by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). The event took place on June 20, 2009, in Osaka, Osaka Prefecture, at the Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium. The event featured ten matches, ...

, Tiger Mask defeated Black Tiger V in a mask vs. mask match. After the match Black Tiger removed his mask revealing himself as

Tatsuhito Takaiwa (born Go Yong-Il (Hangul: 고 용일), July 5, 1972) is a Zainichi-Korean professional wrestler. Takaiwa is one of the more well-traveled junior heavyweights in Japan, having wrestled for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), and Pro Wrestling Zero1, ...

, breaking the Black Tiger tradition of foreigners under the mask. Takaiwa reprised his role as Black Tiger V in 2011 in

Toryumon Mexico Toryumon or Tōryūmon may refer to: *Toryumon (Último Dragón) is a professional wrestling promotion that operated in Japan until 2004 and in Mexico, where it's called Toryumon Mexico. The promotion is owned and operated by Yoshihiro Asai, who ...

, where he lost the mask for the second time on May 14, 2011, to

Último Dragón (born December 12, 1966) is a Japanese professional wrestler and actor, better known as . In addition to having trained in Japan, Asai learned to wrestle in the lucha libre style while working in Mexico. He is credited with popularizing the "Asa ...

. Despite losing his mask twice, Takaiwa continues to make appearances as Black Tiger V.

Black Tiger VI

Black Tiger's sixth generation (VI),

Tomohiro Ishii is a Japanese professional wrestler currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). He also makes additional appearances for All Elite Wrestling (AEW). He is also known for his work with the independent Fighting World of Japan Pro Wrestling ( ...

, had the shortest run under the mask. In early 2011, Ishii began feuding with Tiger Mask IV and, after losing his hair on January 23, began wearing a Black Tiger mask, despite still going by his real name, which he then lost to Tiger Mask IV on February 20 at The New Beginning.

Black Tiger VII

Black Tiger's seventh Generation (VII), referred to simply as "Black Tiger", debuted during New Japan's Road to the Super Jr. 2Days Tournament, which took place on April 14 and 15, 2012, and which he went on to win. Following

Kazushige Nosawa , better known by his ring names Nosawa and , (born December 17, 1976) is a Japanese freelance professional wrestler, best known for his appearances in All Japan Pro Wrestling and various independent promotions. Career Early career (19952004) Nos ...

's May 23 arrest for smuggling cannabis, it was confirmed that he had been portraying Black Tiger. Two days later, New Japan officially pulled Tiger from the Best of the Super Juniors tournament. Nosawa has continued working as Black Tiger VII, most notably for All Japan Pro Wrestling.

Black Tiger VIII

Black Tiger's eight generation (VIII) debuted with Team Filthy on NJPW Strong on episode 68 (November 28, 2021), where he attacked former Black Tiger Rocky Romero causing a DQ finish to a 5 vs 5 tag match, before being revealed to be Romero's former Havana Pitbulls team mate,

Ricky Reyes Reyes Nunez (born August 28, 1978), better known by the ring name Ricky Reyes, is a Cuban-American professional wrestler. He is known for his appearances in Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, World Wrestling Council, Lucha Underground and va ...

Signature moves

:*''Black Tiger Bomb'' ( Sitout crucifix powerbomb) :* Kneeling belly to belly piledriver :* Tiger suplex

Notes

References

External links

BOTSJ tournament history
{{DEFAULTSORT:Black Tiger (Professional Wrestling) Professional wrestling gimmicks Chaos (professional wrestling) members Suzuki-gun members